The Backbenchers: The Missed Call!

by Sidharth

  They were in the eighth grade when the strains in their relationship really started to show. Shreya grew up to be a sweet little girl, with cute dimpled cheeks and a warm smile on her face at all times. Natasha, on the other hand, was a tall, too-skinny, too-fair girl with sharp features and an unpleasant air of arrogance around her. Shreya was loved, while Natasha-still not as womanly and gorgeous as now-was hardly noticed. But Natasha was all Shreya had ever needed. She was family, a sister she had never had.

  It took just one day to change everything.

  One day, after a sleepover, Shreya had forgot her bag at Natasha's place. In the morning, she had forgotten to take her bag from Natasha's place. Since Shreya was to leave for a family vacation the next day, Natasha deposited the bag in Shreya's school locker. Five days later, when she was back from Shimla, she collected the bag and took it home. Her mom never used to check her bag. But that day, she did, and it changed everything.

  What Shreya's mother found changed everything in Shreya's life. Dirty magazines with a lot of illicit pictures. Not one, but six of them. It had been four years and her parents still hadn't got over what they found in her bag. They shut her in her room for a week with a complete silent treatment. Poor things. They hadn't known what to say. Every single day since then had been like jail-time for her. Every move of hers was tracked-where she went, what she did-every single action. Her parents thought she was in bad company and that it would destroy her life. After all, dirty magazines in an eighth grader's bag was a big deal.

  Shreya was broken, for months. She never tried to think of who put them in her bag, and she never suspected Natasha. She knew Natasha ... simply trusted that Natasho would never do something like that to her. Natasha would have no reason to. Soon, everybody in the school knew about the magazines and they started to treat Shreya like an untouchable. Natasha was one of them. She stopped talking to Shreya and pretended she didn't exist anymore.

  Until ... one day-about a year after that incidentShreya met her. She was in distress and wanted someone she could talk to.

  `Natasha, please believe me. Those magazines were not mine. I don't know what they were doing in my bag. I don't know how this happened. But you have to believe me. Please. You are my only friend. Please trust me.'

  'But. . .' Natasha had struggled with words. `But then, how did they come there?F

  'I don't know. But we can find out, right?'

  `I ... I don't know, Shreya. I don't think we can find out...'

  `Even if we cannot, all that matters to me is you. All I want to know is that you believe me. That I don't disgust you,' Shreya said, peering into Natasha's eyes. `Do you believe me?'

  Natasha shook her head and said, `I don't think we can ever be friends.' And then she left, leaving Shreya behind in a flood of tears. Shreya lost her only friend. Not only that, she lost her entire social life with her.

  For everyone, she was a pervert ... even though almost everyone had an internet connection with the links to almost every free porn site. Nevertheless, she didn't hate the hypocrisy as much as she hated that Natasha wouldn't talk to her. She saw Natasha make new friends, become bitchy, and hang around with people both of them hated. She just watched from a distance, feeling sorry for herself.

  She always thought Natasha would eventually come back to her. That never happened. Natasha kept creeping up the social ladder and became the most popular girl in school. Shreya was left on the side-lines, wanting and wishing the best for Natasha.

  What did Shreya know that it was Natasha who had planted the magazines in her bag because she was jealous of the attention Shreya used to get! What did she know!

  s Natasha made her way to the library, she absentmindedly bumped into some seventh grader and knocked over the notebooks he was carrying. The kid quickly bent down and collected his things together. He apologized repeatedly to her for the collision, which wasby no means-his fault. She just glared at him and turned away.

  She had not met Shreya or Vicky since a week. In fact, she had actually dodged Shreya, in case she brought up the quiz again. She was in no mood to face either Shreya or Vicky again. But when she saw her classmates preparing for the quiz, she felt a pang of... something. She did not know what it was. But she wanted to win. It was something she was used to-winning.

  So finally, when she could not put it off any longer, she decided to visit the library and get some useful books, to help her prepare. It was just that she did not know what the quiz was about. General knowledge, maybe. And current affairs. Thats what all quizzes are about, aren't they?

  That decided, she looked around for a good book on either of them. She found many, and brought a few of them over to a seat and started to flip through them. It was well over an hour when she overheard some students wondering how to split work.

  `I'll take wave optics and thermodynamics,' a girl said.

  `No, no! I already know thermodynamics. Why don't you do magnetism? And I'll take calculus,' a guy replied. `Anyway, we have to just read the funny stuff about it. We don't have to get into details.'

  That was when Natasha realized that she had been reading all the wrong books. Thermodynamics? Magnetism? Calculus? This is not general knowledge! This is science! These are topics from Physics and Maths.

  `Excuse me? Are you guys...' she paused at the semishocked expressions on their faces. `... are you preparing for the quiz?'

  `Yes,' the girl replied, a little unsure.

  `Can you tell me what topics the questions will be framed from?'

  `Science-Physics, Chemistry and Maths.'

  `Bloody hell,' Natasha said and got up to replace the books.

  They looked visibly shocked. Natasha had never sought help. Or said thank you. Times had changed.

  `Can we talk?' she heard Shreya say to her.

  `Yes, sure,' Natasha replied, looking up from the book she was pretending to read.

  `About the quiz,' Shreya said in a clear voice. `Have you started with anything?'

  `Yeah, I did. I ...' she said and added without thinking, `I've completed Wave Optics and a few other topics.'

  `Oh, great. So you are taking Physics?' Shreya asked, pointing to the book Natasha was reading.

  `Physics? As in ... the whole syllabus, you mean?'

  `Yeah. I thought it would be easier this way. We could take one subject each, the one we know best,' Shreya said.

  `That makes sense.'

  `So, I'm taking Mathematics. And since you are interested in Physics, should I ask Vicky to take Chemistry? I mean, just to let him know?'

  `Yes. Of course,' I replied.

  `Vicky? Vicky!' Shreya called.

  `Yeah?' he called back.

  `You're cool with taking Chemistry, right?'

  `What is she taking?' he asked, looking at Natasha.

  `Physics. And I'm taking Maths. So Chemistry is yours,' Shreya said.

  `I want Physics.'

  `But, she has already completed a topic! Let her do it.'

  `No, I want Physics. I've always wanted Physics,' Vicky declared.

  Natasha decided to stay out of it and did not say anything to him. He would just provoke her more and they would end up having a verbal battle again. She wanted none of that. She wanted to stay out of making any kind of a scene.

  Shreya tried to convince him for a while but he simply would not listen. Natasha did not care. She was yet to start studying any subject. So, she was just about to say Chemistry was okay with her, when Vicky insisted he discuss the matter with her personally. Before she could say anything, she saw him take a few steps toward her. He tilted his head backwards and looked her from top to bottom, as if measuring her up. Then he said, `Take Physics. What do I get?'

  What kind of question is that, Natasha thought. `Chemistry ... maybe?' she suggested, her voice dripping sarcasm.

  `Ha! Hilarious,' Vicky mocked and looked straight in her eyes. `You know what I mean. What do I get in exchange?'

  `What?' Natasha let out, exasperated.

&n
bsp; `You made out with Rana to make him get Yuvraj beat up, right? So you-'

  `Stop it, Vicky! Have you gone mad?' Shreya said. Natasha just stared.

  `You want Yuvraj beaten up, you make out. You want Chemistry ... and I'm giving you that. What do I get?' Vicky said.

  `Just stop! Do you have any idea what you are saying?' Shreya said, looking at Vicky with a shocked expression.

  Natasha said nothing. She just slowly stood up, her eyes narrowed in anger and popped on her forehead. Before Vicky could realize, she landed a crisp blow on his nose. Vicky staggered back a few steps reeling under the impact.

  `What the-' Vicky said out loud. People gathered around seeing the commotion. Vicky stepped close to her with a hand on his nose and tried to hit her back. But several guys held him back from doing so. `You bloody bitch! How dare you? I will not leave you. I'll get back-' he shouted at her.

  `I would like to see how,' Natasha thundered. `Like you did now? Standing still and getting punched?'

  `You will see-'

  `Yes. And I want to see. Stay away from me.'

  `Why? Did you find some other guy you can cheat on?'

  She did not retort to that. She needed to breathe. And she needed a place where she could hide. She did not want to cry. And if she accidentally did, she did not want anyone to see her cry.

  `Screw you,' she said and made her way out of the classroom.

  `For how much?' Vicky called from behind.

  She quickly made her way to the girls' washroom. She climbed up the basing, sat, and she cried. She finally let her tears flow, and they did. She tried to control her sobs; she did not want anyone to know. She was furious and immensely hurt.

  A little while later, when her tears finally ceased flowing, she sat there, taking deep breaths. She washed her face to remove any signs of dried up tears. Not that anyone would notice. She made her way discreetly towards her class, picked up her bag, after checking that there was no teacher inside the classroom, and went to medical bay. She told the doctor she wasn't feeling well and the doctor gave her permission to go back home. She went home and slumped on the couch. Her head hurt from all the clutter inside it. Soon, she fell asleep and slept like a child.

  When she woke up, it was around eight. She checked her phone, expecting to see no missed call and no unanswered text message. But she was taken by surprise. There was a text message from Shreya.

  `What do you want to take? Physics or Chemistry?'

  She thought of ignoring the message, but then realised that doing so would also mean that the topic would still be open for discussion the next day. She did not look forward to that at all. Another heated conversation with Vicky did not take her fancy.

  `Chemistry.'

  She settled with Chemistry, not because she knew Vicky would not give away Physics easily, but because she did not want a stupid argument about a stupid subject to ruin another one of her days. One scene was more than enough. She didn't need any more.

  For once, she wanted to be invisible.

  atasha spent the next two days at home. She had to prepare for the quiz properly. Self-study was important, she told herself. Plus, she just needed a break from everything. Her dad was out for some work, and so, it was easy for her to stay at home. She was alone, but not lonely. There was no one to question her.

  She did not understand what was happening to her lately. She had never been someone who would shed tears for anything. She just couldn't get the Vicky incident out of her head. She had no idea it would be so painful. She was used to being hated, but people had begun to show it now. She had thought it would go away with time, but it just kept getting worse everyday. Every new jibe, every new incident, killed a little part of her.

  That day, when she sat down to study, she could not concentrate. Her mind kept wandering to everything that had happened to her. She knew she had to study. The first round of the quiz was within a week and their half-yearly exams were just around the corner, too. She had to do well in academics, she had pledged. That was the only thing she still had control over.

  But all she could think about was how empty her life was. She had no friends, a malfunctioning family, a ruined `love' life, and a tainted reputation. There was no one who genuinely cared for her. She had too many enemies, and no friends.

  She suddenly started to miss Rana beyond belief. They had had good times together. He had seemed genuinely interested in her, not just her legs. She had started to rely on him. Even after everything, Natasha still believed that things would get back to normal between the two of them. He would still love her . . . when he realized that her feelings for him were true. Natasha knew he would realize that she didn't intend to use him.

  She had her books open in front of her but she couldn't study. She watched television, surfed the net, but nothing seemed to catch her attention for too long. She started to go through her phonebook to check if there was someone she could talk to. And when the glimmer of a wish for her mom started to form in her mind, she hated herself for it and pushed the thought right out of her head. She scrolled down and her eyes stuck on his name again. Rana.

  She battled for a few minutes before she dialled the number. The phone rang a few times and Rana picked up. Natasha's hands trembled in anticipation.

  `What do you want?' Rana asked without emotion.

  `Rana ... I want to talk to you,' Natasha said. Rana's tone killed the hope in her.

  `Again? Why don't you get it? We are done. We are through. Stop bothering me now!' he shouted suddenly.

  `I just want to talk to you! Is that too much to ask for?' she asked, politely.

  `Considering everything that has happened yes. It is way too much to ask for.'

  `Listen to me. It won't kill you,' Natasha said a little angrily. She was not used to taking shit from anyone. But then she realized who she was talking to. Her tone softened. `Please. I am not lying now. I want a chance ... just one last chance ...'

  'A chance at what?'

  `With you. I want a chance with you. I want us to get back together.'

  `I know I have said it before, but-are you kidding me? Haven't I told you already-I do not care about what you want. So just stop it,' Rana shouted again. He was exceptionally loud. Why was he suddenly shouting so much?

  `Please try to understand, Rana. I mean it. I am not lying. I really, really . . .' she held herself back before she could let the word `love' escape her mouth.

  `You really, really ... ? What? Go on!'

  She took a deep breath, and said it out loud, `I love you.' She was letting him see how vulnerable she was. She thought that would make him consider her request.

  `You what?'

  `I love you, Rana.'

  `Why did you not tell me before? Baby, I love you too. You're my entire world!' he mocked, laughing at her.

  `I do. I really do.'

  And I love you too! How perfect. The two of us, madly in love with each other.'

  `Rana ... please ... please believe me,' she begged. To her horror, her voice started to crack. If everything was not insulting enough already, she was going to cry too.

  `Why should I? Why the hell should I?' he thundered. Natasha was taken aback. The tears stopped in their track. Her words died in her mouth. She was overcome with pain. Couldn't he see? He was killing her. Over and over again.

  `I have had enough of this bullshit. And I want no more of it. Get the hell out of my life. I do not want you in it. So-go away,' he said and with an air of finality, hung up on her.

  She knew she had lost him. She had wronged him once, but she had apologized, hadn't she? She had tried everything in her power to make things okay. There was nothing left to do. She lost all enthusiasm to even try. She brushed away the few tears covering her cheeks and got out of her room. She needed to go out. She needed to get some fresh air. But things were really not going her way. When she came out of her room, she realized that she was not alone. Her mom was there. Their eyes met for a brief moment before she rushed out of the hou
se and ran as fast as her legs could take her.

  She wanted to go as far away from everything as she could.

  he last few of the guys made their way out of the house. Rana was tired. Not because of the party that just got over but because he had not been feeling too good about what he had just done. The crowd obviously enjoyed it. He felt it was right thing to do. He never meant to put the phone on loudspeaker when Natasha called, but when her number flashed, he got angry and couldn't control himself.

  He mocked her and made fun of her. The guys enjoyed every bit of the conversation and so did he. But after he disconnected the call, he felt disgusted with himself.

  `Hey,' Rishab said as he sat on the couch next to Rana. The house was in a mess. There were pizza boxes and beer bottles everywhere.

  `We are such bastards,' Rana said.

  `What? Why? Don't tell me you're feeling sorry for that bitch. She deserved it,' Rishab said.

  `I don't think anyone deserved what I did. I think I should apologize.'

  Are you crazy? Shut up. She used you, and she is still trying to do the same. She just wants you around because she is alone right now The moment she finds someone else, she'll dump you.'

  `That's still no excuse to talk to her like that,' he said. He knew Rishab wouldn't understand. In fact, part of it was Rishab's idea.

  Are you in love with her? Still?'

  `I don't know, Rishab. She screwed me over. I am very angry, but I think I have forgiven her.'

  `Do you still love her?' he asked again.

  `I don't know I just don't want to make her sad. I have had my revenge twice and I have hurt her. I should feel better but I don't. I still want another shot with her. I don't know whether I love her or not.'

  `You're screwed up!' Rishab said and laughed at him.